Cartridge new or used ?

@sleepwalker65

 

Why would you go vintage when brand-new, I’m-abused Audio-Technica Micro-Line cartridges are available everywhere at reasonable prices? (Thanks Chakster) I prefer a known commodity, and it’s worked out superbly with my VM540ML cartridges.

Do you know who was the designer of the Audio-Technica top of the line MM cartridges in the 80s?  I wish to know, because some of the best cartridge designers are no longer in business. Sadly we can not buy a cartridge from Ikeda, Nori, Takeda.. anymore, but their cartridges are hand build and voiced/tuned by the masters themselves. For this reason we can only buy vintage, hoping to find a NOS or perfect (nearly unused) working sample. 

Another reason is unobtained material and methods used in the 80s, but not available today which makes those old models unique compared to new models. 

It does not mean that the new cartridges are bad, but if we're looking for something unique then we have rare cartridges from the golden age on analogue. It's all about curiosity after all. 

I guess one exception could be where the stylus is user replaceable and the price is appropriate for such a contingency. Even then one takes one’s chances which is why I won’t do it again. I bought a used Pickering XSV3000 that came without a stylus. Bought the replacement stylus which was fine, but the cartridge has a noticeable channel imbalance which makes it unusable. So, between cartridge and new stylus, that was $200 down the drain. That put the stopper to future used-cartridge purchases.

No problem buying used. Preference is for them to actually be broken. Broken cantilever, missing stylus. Open coil would not interest me.

Off to the retipper once received.

Steve
I also bought a xsv3000 with completely worn out "E" stylus cw the very rare mounting pads.
Bought a replacement stylus and guess I was lucky as it sounded really good to my ears.
My ADC XLM mk2 and Sonus Bronze sound better but it was still a fair buy.

chakster,, there is a very big difference between a cartridge that has been well taken of by the original owner and one that has been worn out and possibly damaged by the prior owner. Obviously, as a cartridge is used, it wears, IOW..it is a wear item. The question is how it was treated in its past, not that it is wearing as we play it.IMO